


Hope

by The_Winter_Writer



Series: Infinity War Fix-Its [2]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: (except thanos...he needs to be set on fire), Avenger Loki (Marvel), Avengers: Infinity War Part 1 (Movie) Spoilers, Fix-It of Sorts, Gen, Jarvis (Iron Man movies) Lives, Loki & Tony Stark Friendship, Loki (Marvel) Needs a Hug, Magic, Not Avengers: Infinity War Part 1 (Movie) Compliant, Post-Avengers: Infinity War Part 1 (Movie), Since i changed some things, Tony Stark Has A Heart, also........, everyone needs a fucking hug, hahahahahaha, infinity war fix-it, pre-Loki/Tony
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-01
Updated: 2018-06-01
Packaged: 2019-05-16 20:00:56
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,394
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14817938
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/The_Winter_Writer/pseuds/The_Winter_Writer
Summary: They had lost. Tony's body was protesting every single movement and he was light-years from Earth. It was hopeless and the sight of a huge debris field, filled with wreckage and bodies, was just another nightmare to add to his growing list.





	Hope

**Author's Note:**

> IW SPOILERS BELOW!!
> 
> This fic contains spoilers for Infinity War.
> 
>  
> 
> As you can tell...I still refuse to accept what happened in IW. Not if I can change things around and fix what I can. This is a fix-it and a post-IW fic with some obvious canon divergence. 
> 
> Additionally I would like to say that I've never wanted to set a character on fire as badly as I want to set Thanos on fire. It was pretty instant and the feeling is clearly enduring.

There were bodies _everywhere_. Tony swallowed roughly at the nightmare hanging suspended in space, silent and still, as their ship slowed to a crawl. _Thanos_. It wasn’t even a question. Tony _knew_ this was Thanos’s handiwork. His side _throbbed_ as he shifted in his seat and tried not to throw up.

“Don’t…don’t hit any of them.”

He wanted to collect every single one of them, wanted to bring them _somewhere_ , so they could be properly laid to rest. Someone should mourn them, offer some kind of word about their loss and pray their souls at least rested peacefully now.

Somehow he recognized one of them as they moved through the field of debris and bodies. Tony’s heart stopped, frozen in his chest, as he stared at a green cloak. The meaning behind _him_ being one of the bodies wasn’t lost on Tony and a sense of horror filled him.

“No.”

That couldn’t be possible. Thor had said Loki died during the whole Dark Elf thing.

“What?” Nebula glanced over at him and he knew the expression on his face must have said _something_ because she turned reassessing eyes onto the mess they were flying through. “Do you know them?”

“That one.” He pointed the green figure out. A closer look at the bodies revealed similar clothing, _Asgardian_ clothing, and Tony closed his eyes. At least…at least _Thor_ could bury his brother. Tony couldn’t bury Peter or any of the others but he could give _this_ to Thor. He would want someone to do the same for him if they found one of his loved ones discarded as though they were nothing. “Can we bring him in?”

He didn’t even know what they were going to do with Loki’s body but he couldn’t leave Thor’s little brother floating out in space. It was wrong. Not after the late nights and the countless stories he’d listened to. By the tenth story about their childhood and even their young adulthood Tony had found himself surprisingly attached to the Loki that Thor told him about. _You would have liked him, Tony, you remind me of him._ If Thor had said that to anyone else they might have taken it as an insult but the love, affection and care Thor clearly felt for his brother made the comparison come off as a compliment.

The Loki from Thor’s stories deserved to be laid to rest by someone who loved him.

Nebula stared at him, must have seen something, because the next thing he knew they were bringing Loki’s body onto the ship. He was hefted up onto a table, a fallen Prince lost in space, and Tony watched as Nebula paused to stare at Loki’s face.

“The Godling.” She murmured mostly to herself and Tony _remembered_ Bruce telling them that Thanos had been the one to send Loki to Earth for the Tesseract. Tony’s eyes took in Loki’s still body, the dust and blood on him, before he saw the bruised throat.

_Crushed throat. Broken neck._

It seemed _wrong_ that something so simple could end the life of a god. Not Loki. Tony remembered him larger than life; snarking and wearing that ridiculous helmet as he wielded magic as though it were effortless. The Loki that Thor had spoken of would surely not meet such an end.

“You know him?” she asked staring at him with those black eyes. Tony could see something on her face.

“Yes. Did you?”

“He…fell. My—Thanos found him. The Godling was broken, ready to die and Thanos broke him further. He tortured him, molded him and sent him to Terra for the Tesseract.”

Tony closed his eyes, shaking his head ruefully, before looking at Loki’s face. “Of course.” It came out softly and Tony silently hated himself. For someone who had suffered torture, who had been pressed repeatedly to do something by his torturers, he should have recognized the signs in someone else. He had watched the video of Loki arriving on Earth, had noticed how horrible he looked, but he’d dismissed it as he read through the Shield files. “Reindeer Games… _fuck_. I should have _known_.”

It made sense. All of Thor’s stories about Loki and Tony had wondered how he’d made so many big, obvious mistakes in his attempt to take over Earth. Loki had seemed to do _everything_ wrong and it had always seemed a bit off.

He reached out hesitantly to touch the bruising around Loki’s neck. The skin was cold and Tony thought back to the multiple times he’d had his own neck in a grasp far stronger than his own. Loki could have _easily_ done _this_ to him but he hadn’t.

Loki suddenly jerked, body seizing and hand locking around Tony’s wrist as he dragged in a deep, rattling breath and Tony’s heart jolted in his chest violently at the sudden movement.

“Holy shit!”

Tony would have scrambled back but the hold on him was firm and unrelenting. Nebula had tensed up, eyes wary and hand on her weapon, as she watched Loki dragging in breath after breath as though it hurt.

Considering everything Tony was sure it did.

“Ummm…Lazarus? Think you could let go of the mortal’s fragile wrist?” bloodshot green eyes looked over at him, unseeing, before they slowly started to focus and Tony watched recognition light up his face.

“Anthony Stark.” He paused, “Iron Man.”

“That’s right and you’re Loki.” He couldn’t resist adding on Loki’s own title. “The God of Mischief. _Reindeer Games_.” He offered a hesitant smile and idly patted the hand latched onto him. “You…ok?” it seemed like something he should ask. Tony didn’t know how Loki was alive, he’d been out in space and his neck had clearly been severely damaged. There was obviously something to the whole ‘god’ thing Loki had going on for him.

It was clearly a title earned.

Loki closed his eyes, head resting on the table he was laying on, all the while still gripping Tony’s wrist but the hold was merely firm instead of threatening. If Tony had to describe it he’d say that Loki was using it to ground himself but Tony wasn’t sure. “I’ve been better.” The sarcastic tone, rough and scratchy, had a small laugh startling out of Tony.

He felt a bit better having Loki there. After the nightmare from Thanos’s planet it felt like a small win. If nothing else a healed and whole Loki would provide some kind of help because Tony _wasn’t_ going to let Thanos win. He couldn’t and Tony knew these gods healed faster than humans.

Green eyes slowly opened and Loki turned carefully to look at Tony. Tony could see those intelligent, clever eyes dragging over his form and then a sardonic look was directed at him. “You’ve looked better yourself.” Loki lingered on the large blood splotch at Tony’s side. The hole, despite his best efforts, was still very much there and needed medical care.

“Felt better, too.”

It was hardly the time to joke. He still had Peter’s ashes clinging to him, his stomach had a hole in it and his body was screaming out in agony. Loki’s fingers flexed where they gripped him. “Thor?” the tone was cautiously hopeful and Tony’s heart lodged in his throat.

Thor had been _with_ Loki? Was he floating out there, just outside of the ship, with the rest of the bodies?

“I don’t know.” He forced himself to meet green eyes that were slowly losing the bloodshot look they’d been sporting since they first opened again. The same kind of emotions he’d seen in Thor’s eyes when talking about Loki lingered there in plain sight. It was nice to know that Thor’s love and fondness was, though silently, returned by his brother. “I ended up on a space ship, trying to save a wizard protecting the Time Stone and then we crashed on Titan.”

Loki flinched at the name of the planet and Tony took that as confirmation of who had done _this_ to Loki but Loki had _survived_ and that gave Tony the smallest amount of hope. He was going to stubbornly cling to any kind of hope he could find. It was all he really had left at this point because if he thought too hard about the consequences of them failing he was going to collapse.

“If he made it to Earth…I wouldn’t know. I was off planet shortly after they arrived.”

“Bruce?”

“He warned us. Not that it did any good.” Tony knew his eyes were glassy with tears now and he forced himself to continue. His voice wasn’t steady; it was threaded with pain and anguish as Loki watched him with dawning horror. “Thanos won.”

It burned. It burned horribly to say it and Tony hated the words. He hated the cost he’d personally been forced to pay for their failure on Titan. Peter’s broken, scared voice would haunt him until the day he died. He had _known_ , he had fucking _known_ , what was coming for years and no one had believed him.

He guessed they did get to lose together though Tony sure as fuck felt alone standing on Titan bleeding from a stab wound and surrounded by ashes. It had been his nightmares brought to life and shoved violently in his face.

Tony wanted to scream and rail at the heavens for the devastation that had been wrought upon the universe.

“You survived.”

“So did you.”

While they had talked Nebula had withdrawn, taken the controls again, as she directed them through the debris and towards Earth. It was probably for the best considering what her words had revealed. Tony desperately wanted to ask, wanted to learn and know, the truth behind the Battle of New York.

There had always been too many pieces and most of them had made zero sense.

Loki levered himself up, grimacing in pain, as Tony leaned back against the cluttered side of the ship. He slowly swung his legs to the side and stood. Tony tensed, ready to step forward if he needed to catch Loki, while he watched as the god took another ragged breath.

“You’re injured.” The words startled him and Tony realized that Loki’s focus had zeroed in on his side.

“That’s what I get for trying to stab a powerful, ugly purple alien.”

Some kind of emotion seemed to make Loki’s face spasm and Tony cocked his head to the side wondering _what_ he’d said caused that particular reaction. “You tried to _stab_ him?”

“Yes.”

“With a blade?”

“No, with my sparkling wit.” Tony rolled his eyes and would have crossed his arms self-consciously if not for the pain still racing through him. “Yes with a blade! He threw an entire fucking moon at me.” That still pissed him off, “A fucking _moon,_ the bastard.”

“I knew you were a survivor.” Was all Loki said to that and Tony blinked at the comment. It tasted of a compliment and he wasn’t completely sure what to do with that. He wasn’t sure what to do with any of this. He was in space, having left a completely different planet from his own, with two aliens and light years from home.

There was no guarantee that he wouldn’t die from his wounds before they made it back to Earth but he didn’t want to think of that. It wasn’t as though he’d planned for this to happen.

Loki’s hand moved up, resting against his neck, before Tony recognized the green and gold glow of Loki’s magic. He had a thousand questions.

“How _did_ you survive in space?”

“I’m a god.”

“Yes. You are a god. A pretty, cunning and vicious god. Good for you. All hail Loki: Bringer of Mischief and Mayhem.” He rolled his eyes, “I know what you are. I asked how. I wasn’t aware that gods could _breathe_ in _space_. Space doesn’t have oxygen.”

“Our physiology is far different from a mortal’s.” the glow of magic faded and he watched Loki lightly touch his neck. This time the grimace of pain was smaller and Tony could visibly see the damage was noticeably healed.

“And the…” he waved towards Loki’s neck not quite wanting to say it. Tony knew _all_ about trauma and he wasn’t going to be a dick about it. The expression on Loki’s face let him know it would have been a huge landmine if he’d chosen to step on it.

Tony mentally patted himself on the back.

Loki’s hand moved from his neck and Tony could see him clenching his fist at his side. “My magic.” He paused and Tony didn’t doubt that Loki was remembering what had happened. “Much like on Svartalfheim when I was run through by the Kursed. It’s a kind of…stasis. My magic automatically moves to protect me.”

“Yeah Thor told me about that.” At the inquiring look, “The sacrificing yourself and dying in his arms… _thing_.” Tony frowned, “It _really_ upset him. Did you know you were going to survive?”

“No.”

It was surprisingly honest and made Tony feel worlds better.

“We’re being hailed.” Nebula cut in. Tony opened his mouth and closed it before turning to regard the blue alien glancing back at him. “It’s a distress signal.”

“Where are we?” Loki asked as he stepped forward. Tony could see tension around his eyes as he regarded the woman in front of them. It was more than obvious he recognized her and Tony mentally winced at the reason for that. Nebula rattled off some location, Tony didn’t recognize a fucking thing, as Loki seemed to brighten. “Ask them to identify themselves.”

“Do you know someone stranded out here?”

“The surviving Asgardians.”

That sounded really, really bad. There had been quite a few bodies where they had picked up Loki and Jane had told Tony about the countless Asgardians she’d met when he’d managed to get together with her to discuss the readings from London.

Those numbers shouldn’t be able to fit on one ship. There was no way they possibly could and that meant Tony was missing a lot of pieces of a very, very large puzzle.

He hadn’t thought much of Bruce’s short explanation of the battle he’d escaped, his Science Bro was more focused on the threat of Thanos, but he’d vaguely remember Bruce saying he’d been with the Asgardians who had been on their way to Earth.

“How many?”

“A fraction.” There was _pain_ in Loki’s voice, “Asgard was decimated and Thanos halved that number when he boarded our ship.” They would have to see about fixing that too. _If_ they managed to get the Time Stone from Thanos to fix all of this shit then they would have to do something about Asgard.

It wasn’t right.

“We’ll fix it.” Tony’s voice hardened and he shoved aside the pain still flaring brightly through him. At this point he was going to get used to being in constantly pain. He took a step forward and almost staggered. “ _Fuck_.”

Loki didn’t hesitate.

He was within Tony’s personal space in a second and a large, elegant looking hand reached out to rest lightly against his side. Tony flinched at the bolt of pain and groaned when that caused even more pain to shoot through him. “You foolish mortal.” The tone was low and slightly reprimanding with a hint of fondness that had Tony blinking. “Why have you not taken care of this?”

“Had other things on my mind.”

“It’s a miracle you’re still standing.” Loki frowned at him, “The damage your body has sustained is significant.” He gave him an appraising look, “It’s impressive you’re alive.”

Warmth started to radiate out from where Loki’s hand touched him as a green and gold glow started to light up the ship. “Asgard.” Nebula cut in while Tony watched Loki’s magic pulse and grow as it seemed to snake through him.

He could feel the pain filling him ebb and start to fade. The headache he’d been intentionally not thinking about for hours was gone, the ache all the way to his bones was fading rapidly and Tony could _feel_ the wound where he’d been run through stitching together.

“Those are my people.” Loki responded when Nebula’s voice cut in asking about the ship hailing them. The feeling of magic flowing through him retreated. Tony blinked down at his side and, unable to stop himself, poked where he’d been impaled.

Nothing.

Tony stared up at the god, noting the slowly fading bruising around his neck and the evidence of a battle lost. They probably made a pathetic looking pair and he almost wanted to laugh but there was no guarantee that it wouldn’t turn hysterical. No one wanted to deal with a hysterical human in the middle of space.

“Thanks.” It seemed to startle Loki and Tony wondered if anyone ever said it to him. _Of course that would be something we have in common._

* * *

The Asgardians _loved_ Loki. Tony watched in something like muted awe at the way Loki carried himself around them, how they looked to him for guidance and hope. Then he looked at the Asgardians themselves.

They looked like they had been swallowed by a war and spat back out.

It was only when he noticed the eyes turn to stare at him that he realized Loki must have been explaining _how_ he’d gotten to them. “This is Anthony Stark of Midgard also known as Iron Man. I’m sure Thor has told you of his friends from Earth. Anthony is one of the Earth’s greatest warriors and has fought countless battles at Thor’s side.” it seemed an important distinction because the interest sharpened on him. Tony was silently thankful for a lifetime of being center stage. “He found me amongst the wreckage of our ship and brought me to you.”

There was a murmur that rose up and Tony watched respect cement itself in their gazes. He didn’t feel like he deserved an ounce of it. It was a heavy weight settling on his shoulders but Tony had gotten used to carrying that kind of weight. If it helped them he would shoulder it without complaint.

Loki continued on, introducing but not completely introducing Nebula, before explaining the situation as he understood it. “My Prince?” a voice asked and Tony turned to see an Asgardian man step forward. “Where will we go now? What has become of Thor?”

“Earth.” He didn’t seem to know how to answer the next question and Tony had no problem stepping forward to draw all eyes on him.

“Thor and Loki were separated during the attack.” His voice easily rang out in the silent ship, “Since Thanos,” there was an uneasy murmur that rose up, “was headed to Earth for the Infinity Stones I’m confident that Thor headed there to fight him off.”

Loki nodded and returned to addressing his people.

Tony stepped back and let him talk. “We’ll have them follow us.” Tony spoke to Nebula, “I’ll get them settled somewhere and we’ll regroup with what is left of the Avengers I told you about.”

“And then we’ll kill Thanos.”

“Yes.” Tony’s voice turned cold and sharp, “Then we’ll kill Thanos and use that fucking gauntlet to save everyone.”

“My sister…”

“Of course we’re going to save her, Blue Steel.” It was the one nickname he’d popped off that Tony _hadn’t_ worried about Nebula reacting violently to. She seemed to _like_ it and Tony was going to count that as a win. Though that might be because he’d fixed the damage she’d sustained during the fight and her arm was no longer sparking.

That had been a tense situation as he’d coaxed and promised until she had let him see the damage. Tony was pretty sure he was growing on her otherwise something told him that he might have found himself outside of the ship instead of co-piloting another space ship.

Nebula looked at him in turn, “We’ll save your son, too.”

Tony opened his mouth to correct her but couldn’t find the words. To deny it would both taste as a truth and a lie. Peter _wasn’t_ actually his but dammit it all if he didn’t consider Peter his in all the ways that mattered. Just like Harley.

_Harley…oh **Harley**. Please let him be alive. Please let him be alive. I can’t have lost both of them. Not both of them…they’re kids. It should have been **me** and not Peter. He’s a kid…a **kid**._

He couldn’t think about the others. Rhodey, Pepper and Happy. The rest of his makeshift family.

“You’re the one Thor and Bruce talked about? _Tony_?” Tony turned and looked at the woman standing close by. She was dressed like a warrior and carried an air that let him know she’d happily cut down anyone in her path. He wondered if the markings on her face indicated a kill count or possibly battles fought and won. His eyes moved to her hip where a weapon hung at her side.

He took in the sharp eyes regarding him with curiosity.

Tony could tell he would like her.

There was no such thing as having too many kickass women in his life.

“Depends on what they were saying.” He flashed a charming grin and saw her blink in surprise before she snorted. Tony watched her flash a look over at Loki and then she was shaking her head in amusement.

“They left _that_ bit out.” Tony really, really wanted to ask but she kept going. “Do you think Thor and Bruce survived?” right to the point.

“If _I_ could survive Thanos I have complete faith they’re both alive and planning their next move with the rest. We just need to get to them.”

She looked at him and Tony could see her trying to figure out how he had survived. Sure enough the next question was along that line. “How _did_ you survive? You’re a mortal without magic or strength. Thanos…” she trailed off and Tony grimaced. There was no need for her to continue.

Tony should have been squashed like a bug but he’d long since resolved he was going to make it a pain in the ass for whoever was trying to kill him. No point in going quietly into that good night.

“I’ve been preparing for him for _years_. I don’t have magic, I don’t have super strength or speed. I don’t have powers or anything that makes me superhuman. I’m a squishy mortal.” His lips quirked in wiry amusement, “But I am a genius and I’m _very_ good at creating weapons. I also have a pretty good track record at managing the impossible.” He wasn’t sure how many nano particles remained in the housing unit, the reactor took a bit of time to send out new ones, and Thanos had destroyed at least a suit worth of them.

He just wasn’t sure if the arc reactor had managed to send out the rest or not. Everything had happened so fucking fast but Tony was sure there were enough nano particles to show off several of his weapons if he put them strictly towards that instead of a full body suit.

Tony reached up and pressed the housing unit for the nanos particles. He focused and they immediately formed one of his arm canons. The tech crawled over his body and he watched the woman jerk at its sudden appearance.

It was the tension of a warrior preparing for a threat.

“You said you didn’t have magic.” The tone was wondering and accusing at the same time. She stepped forward, though, and reached out to touch the canon without a hint of fear. Tony slowly changed it to the blade he’d tried to stab Thanos with and watched as she leaned _closer_ to stare at it. “Impressive.”

He couldn’t help mentally preening at the praise. Tony had been working on perfecting the nano particle tech needed for a complete suit and so he’d have enough in the housing unit to replace his suit multiple times over before he’d need to change out his reactor.

Better safe than sorry and Tony would rather be over prepared instead of under.

“Has the rest of Earth advanced so far?” that was Loki. _When did he get there?_ Tony turned to regard the god but Loki was staring at his arm in surprise and Tony thought he might truly look impressed.

“No.” it was easy to answer because it hadn’t completely advanced that far. Tony knew that Wakanda was leaps and bounds above the rest of the world but Tony liked to think he was competing even if he was missing a very important resource he’d _love_ to get his hands on. He liked the challenge and loved what it meant for the future.

“Does it merely produce a weapon for your hand or does it have other uses?”

Tony wasn’t sure how many nano particles were left from his fight with Thanos, the Titan had attacked too swiftly and with far more force than Tony had planned for. It had cost quite a few nano particles so he wouldn’t know until he checked.

He stepped back and let the suit crawl over his body. Tony knew it looked impressive, the first time he’d watched it he had been a bit in awe of the process and judging by the expressions from the two Asgardians it looked just as impressive as he remembered.

The suit was obviously damaged and Tony frowned at it, armored fingers brushing against the damage, as he looked up.

Everyone on the ship was staring at him as though he’d just done something impossible.

“If only you had access to the metals and tools used by the Dwarves on Nidavellir. I can only imagine the wonders you could create.” Loki’s tone was full of appreciation.

That was apparently a _huge_ compliment judging by the looks he was getting and Tony opened his mouth to say something to brush the compliment away but the woman was stepping close and grinning at him in a slightly feral way.

He was both terrified and aroused.

How did he keep stumbling across women who were capable of that?

“Their stories _are_ true.” She looked to Loki, “Are there more like him on Earth?”

“There is no one else like him anywhere.”

“Pity.”

“The universe couldn’t handle two of me.” Tony quipped and grinned when she threw her head back to laugh.

“I like him.”

“I’m a bit fond as well.”

Tony glanced around, surrounded by gods and unfairly tall beings, before sighing. “Can we get this show on the road? We need to get back to Earth, see who is alive and then go kill a Mad Titan.”

“I really like him.”

“Great.”

* * *

The ships touched down near the Avengers Compound. He led the way out of the ship they’d taken from Titan, down the ramp and waited as what was left of Asgard slowly stepped out into the morning light.

_Yay for new housing recently finished and to think they told me it was too much._

At least _this_ bit of Earth looked the same and Tony greedily grabbed that fact with metaphorical fingers. He needed something else familiar, something grounding. Being surrounded by aliens was so far from familiar that it wasn’t funny.

Well… _Loki_ was familiar.

By virtue of experience and Thor’s stories.

Tony was also having a very hard time ignoring the way his brain was starting to react the longer he was in a far saner Loki’s presence. He was sharp, biting, witty, unfairly amusing and wickedly smart.

They also seemed to share a similar sense of humor.

“There should be enough space considering…” he trailed off and looked at the weary faces looking around. Tony spread his arms out, indicating _everything_ , as he raised his voice and tried to throw in a bit of cheer despite everything. “Welcome to Earth.” It was the exact opposite of what he’d said to that fucking monster trying to tell them they should rejoice that they were going to die.

Fuck that shit.

Tony hoped Squidward rejoiced before he froze to death in space thinking he was going to come to Earth and just do whatever the fuck he wanted. Fucking monster.

Fucking evil aliens.

“No Tower?”

“Changed things up a bit. There should be enough room in the new housing complex. Jarvis was in the process of ensuring all of the orders and supplies were properly allocated so it should be completely inhabitable until I can figure out the damage done.”

Loki looked around and Valkyrie, because Tony wasn’t going to try butchering the name she’d finally given him, stepped up next to him. Nebula stood on his other side, eyes taking in the landscape and body tense. She was broken in all the worse ways and Tony wasn’t sure what to do to help her.

He only hoped that Thanos’s death might help.

“Come on. Let’s…let’s get them settled. I’ll have Jarvis and Friday help explain anything they might need. If we have to I’ll buy out a supermarket or something.”

He got as far as stepping up to the door before he heard a voice yell out. “Tones!” Tony turned and jerked as the sight of Rhodey moving towards him as swiftly as he could registered.

Tony’s eyes _burned_ as he didn’t even fucking hesitate. He immediately closed the distance and pulled his oldest, dearest friend into the tightest hug he could manage. Something in him shuddered back into place and Tony could breathe a bit easier than he could the second before. “You’re alive. You’re alive. You’re alive.”

It was impossible to miss the way Rhodey’s voice was shaking with emotion and the way his hold tightened. “Fuck, Rhodey. I thought—” he shoved his face against Rhodey and breathed.

There were others he needed to check on. He would have Jarvis check on Harley and then he’d go get Harley himself if he had to. All of his people needed to be safe and accounted for so he could go off again to keep them safe.

Bruce was pulling him into a hug next and he grinned. He needed this so much. Tony had needed to see that others had survived Thanos’s wrath. “Bruce.” Valkyrie’s voice came from behind him and he watched as Bruce perked up, grinning in relief.

She happily yanked him in for a surprisingly rough hug. The others were all watching and waiting.

“Fuck. Ok…I need to get them settled first, ok. Then we’ll talk.”

“Them?”

“The Asgardians and my new badass assassin friend, Nebula.” He grinned, “Seriously she’s fucking _awesome_.”

Tony caught Loki moving closer and realized he was probably looking for his brother. He was probably wondering if Thor had made it to Earth and if he had if he had survived Thanos culling half the universe.

If Thor hadn’t then Loki was going to be going from a Prince to a King pretty fast and Tony wasn’t sure he was actually ready for _that_.

“Thor?” Tony asked for him. “Did Thor make it?”

“Yes.” Rhodey laughed and Tony could see tears of relief in his best friend’s eyes. “You should have seen it, Tones. It was a hell of an entrance. He could have singlehandedly won against their entire force. I’ve never seen anything like it.”

Tony could see the tension in Loki ease. “Hear that, Lo? Big Bro is trying to steal your title as Most Dramatic.”

“I thought you held the title, _Anthony_.”

Valkyrie looked between the two of them, “ _Your savior is here!_ ” She said in a voice that was clearly mimicking Loki’s and Tony perked up at what was obviously a very entertaining story. “Out of the fog, Lacky. Full battle regalia.”

“The helmet. Please tell me he had the helmet on.”

“Helmet and cape.”

“I really like you.” He turned to Rhodey, “I’m keeping them. They’re all full of sass and badassness. I need them.”

“Tony… _no_.”

“You don’t understand. I’m keeping the entire set. They’re mine. It’s too late.”

“You can’t keep them. They don’t belong to you.”

Tony mock scowled. “They do too. All of them. They’re mine now.”

It was light and he fucking needed it. Judging by the lightening of tension in the air Tony was sure everyone had needed it. He stepped back, almost hesitating at letting Rhodey go, before turning to his new guests.

He was just about to be responsible, to get everyone settled, when the sight of dark clouds rolling in registered.

There was a loud crack of lightning and the echoing _boom_ of thunder that seemed to rattle the planet. He glanced back just past Rhodey to see Thor _staring_ at Loki as though he was the best thing the god had ever seen in existence.

Thor looked _very_ different without his long golden hair. He also looked as though his entire world had ended and that he had found a missing piece of it as his eyes never looked away from Loki.

“ _Brother._ ”

The Asgardians were still, Valkyrie remained standing next to Bruce and Loki was absolutely frozen.

Tony watched Thor close the distance, a huge fucking _axe_ clutched in one hand and Mjolnir nowhere in sight, before he violently yanked Loki into a bone crushing hug that Tony knew he wouldn’t have survived.

"You are  _not_ the worst." it seemed important that Thor get those words out.

The axe fell to the ground, discarded and forgotten, as Thor clutched Loki to him with the clear intention of not letting go. He could see the way that Loki actually flailed at the violence and strength behind the hug before his arms slowly moved to return it.

“You were dead.” Thor’s voice was choked, _wrecked_ with emotion, as he refused to let Loki go. “ _I saw you die_.” The pain in those words made Tony think of the agony of watching Peter disappear into nothing more than ash. It was the same kind of pain he’d felt in the past watching his oldest friends falling when he couldn’t catch them.

“Nearly.” Loki’s voice was low, “My magic protected me much like it did on Svartalfheim. If Anthony had not found me I would still be in the wreckage.” Tony really, really should have seen what happened next coming.

There were practically flashing neon lights telling him what was in his immediate future.

One moment he was next to Rhodey, a step towards the Asgardians, and the next he was getting yanked into a Norse God group hug. It knocked the air out of him and he scrambled uselessly, arms trapped, as Thor gripped him and practically crushed him up against them.

“Thank you, Tony. _Thank you_.”

“I could hardly leave him there.” He managed in a strangled, choked voice. “Hey, big guy, mind letting the tiny mortal breathe?”

The strength in the hug lessened but the hug itself didn’t stop. Tony wasn’t sure Thor was going to let either of them go and he relaxed in the hold. It was probably best to just let Thor hug it out and then he’d be free to stand on his own two feet again.

His feet, which were not actually touching the ground at the moment and Tony silently hated his lack of height.

Tony glanced over Thor’s shoulder only to notice others had shown up, others he didn’t want to see because it fucking _hurt_ , and focused on the gods he was pressed against. “How about we all go inside and I get your people settled? Maybe some sleep and food? A long shower…clean clothing.” he was wearing  _something_ Asgardian but, while nice, wasn't  _his_ and he needed the familiar.

He needed all of those things and so did everyone else. He also needed a vacation because this universe ending shit was taking its toll and he deserved some kind of break.

It was with obvious reluctance that Thor released them. Tony could see him keeping a hand touching Loki, clearly to make sure he was really there, before turning to see his people.

“Settled?”

“Thought they could stay in the new housing complex. There should be plenty of room. They need somewhere to stay while we figure out how to go kill that purple son of a bitch and save everyone he took.” He couldn’t hold back the pure anger and hatred towards Thanos.

Tony wanted Thanos to _suffer_.

He shoved that rage down, pulled up something lighter, as he turned. Tony glanced at Loki and could hardly resist. It was so far from the first time they had been together, by themselves, and Tony had been threatening Loki on behalf of the Earth.

“So, Lokes, how do you feel about joining the Avengers?” Tony watched the way Loki’s eyes widened in surprise and Thor’s face split into a wide, bright and heart stopping grin.

That small little flame of hope burned.

They were broken, beaten and lost but Tony had Stephen Strange’s words as a kind of comfort. He had _hated_ Stephen for giving up the Time Stone for him, especially after the wizard had promised he’d let them die if it meant saving it, but time had given him a chance to _think_ beyond emotion.

He had observed 14,000,605 possible outcomes to their fight with only one ending in victory. Knowing all of that, knowing that one path, he had willingly given up the stone.

_We’re in the endgame now._

Tony closed his eyes and remembered the look he had gotten before Stephen Strange had turned to ash.

_It was the only way._

Somehow _this_ was the choice that led to them defeating Thanos. They lost the battle but Tony would be damned if they lost the war. He glanced at the familiar faces behind Thor and the new ones. Most of the original team seemed to be intact _and_ they had some very important additions.

Loki’s eyes seemed to flash as Tony looked at him and the god opened his mouth to answer, “Interested.”

“Great.” Tony grinned, wide and sharp. They had this. They were in the fucking endgame and Thanos was going to pay for what he'd done. He was going to pay for every single life he'd taken and ruined. “Welcome to the Avengers.”

**Author's Note:**

> That's right. I gave Loki back to Thor. I practically gift-wrapped him and handed him over because the first ten minutes of IW were _evil_ and should not exist. The sun is shining on both of them and there isn't a cloud in sight. Fight me.
> 
> Then, because I wanted to see Loki fighting with the Avengers, I made him a fucking Avenger.
> 
> And clearly the world can never have too many Loki/Tony interactions. I did put down little hints of pre-Loki/Tony and I didn't quite realize what I'd been doing until I was looking back over it. My brain has gotten onto a FrostIron kick and keeps veering off down that path. This is basically building the foundations for it.
> 
> As you can tell I couldn't stop myself from writing another IW fit-it. This is my second and probably not the last. This time I thought I'd explore a different point and change shit up in another way (with the goal of Loki being alive because _he is_ ). You're going to notice a pattern when it comes to me writing anything relating to IW and that pattern is Loki living (a month later and I'm still salty af about it). On top of that I wanted to drag Valkyrie back into it and I needed a Rhodey/Tony hug.
> 
> So...I hope you enjoyed yourself during my second attempt at fixing things in IW. What'd you think about this one?
> 
>  
> 
>  
> 
> [My Tumblr](http://the-winter-writer.tumblr.com)


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